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  • CHAPTER 2. The Council with the Munchkins

  • She was awakened by a shock, so sudden and severe that if Dorothy had not been lying

  • on the soft bed she might have been hurt.

  • As it was, the jar made her catch her breath and wonder what had happened; and

  • Toto put his cold little nose into her face and whined dismally.

  • Dorothy sat up and noticed that the house was not moving; nor was it dark, for the

  • bright sunshine came in at the window, flooding the little room.

  • She sprang from her bed and with Toto at her heels ran and opened the door.

  • The little girl gave a cry of amazement and looked about her, her eyes growing bigger

  • and bigger at the wonderful sights she saw.

  • The cyclone had set the house down very gently--for a cyclone--in the midst of a

  • country of marvelous beauty.

  • There were lovely patches of greensward all about, with stately trees bearing rich and

  • luscious fruits.

  • Banks of gorgeous flowers were on every hand, and birds with rare and brilliant

  • plumage sang and fluttered in the trees and bushes.

  • A little way off was a small brook, rushing and sparkling along between green banks,

  • and murmuring in a voice very grateful to a little girl who had lived so long on the

  • dry, gray prairies.

  • While she stood looking eagerly at the strange and beautiful sights, she noticed

  • coming toward her a group of the queerest people she had ever seen.

  • They were not as big as the grown folk she had always been used to; but neither were

  • they very small.

  • In fact, they seemed about as tall as Dorothy, who was a well-grown child for her

  • age, although they were, so far as looks go, many years older.

  • Three were men and one a woman, and all were oddly dressed.

  • They wore round hats that rose to a small point a foot above their heads, with little

  • bells around the brims that tinkled sweetly as they moved.

  • The hats of the men were blue; the little woman's hat was white, and she wore a white

  • gown that hung in pleats from her shoulders.

  • Over it were sprinkled little stars that glistened in the sun like diamonds.

  • The men were dressed in blue, of the same shade as their hats, and wore well-polished

  • boots with a deep roll of blue at the tops.

  • The men, Dorothy thought, were about as old as Uncle Henry, for two of them had beards.

  • But the little woman was doubtless much older.

  • Her face was covered with wrinkles, her hair was nearly white, and she walked

  • rather stiffly.

  • When these people drew near the house where Dorothy was standing in the doorway, they

  • paused and whispered among themselves, as if afraid to come farther.

  • But the little old woman walked up to Dorothy, made a low bow and said, in a

  • sweet voice: "You are welcome, most noble Sorceress, to

  • the land of the Munchkins.

  • We are so grateful to you for having killed the Wicked Witch of the East, and for

  • setting our people free from bondage." Dorothy listened to this speech with

  • wonder.

  • What could the little woman possibly mean by calling her a sorceress, and saying she

  • had killed the Wicked Witch of the East?

  • Dorothy was an innocent, harmless little girl, who had been carried by a cyclone

  • many miles from home; and she had never killed anything in all her life.

  • But the little woman evidently expected her to answer; so Dorothy said, with

  • hesitation, "You are very kind, but there must be some mistake.

  • I have not killed anything."

  • "Your house did, anyway," replied the little old woman, with a laugh, "and that

  • is the same thing. See!" she continued, pointing to the corner

  • of the house.

  • "There are her two feet, still sticking out from under a block of wood."

  • Dorothy looked, and gave a little cry of fright.

  • There, indeed, just under the corner of the great beam the house rested on, two feet

  • were sticking out, shod in silver shoes with pointed toes.

  • "Oh, dear!

  • Oh, dear!" cried Dorothy, clasping her hands together in dismay.

  • "The house must have fallen on her. Whatever shall we do?"

  • "There is nothing to be done," said the little woman calmly.

  • "But who was she?" asked Dorothy. "She was the Wicked Witch of the East, as I

  • said," answered the little woman.

  • "She has held all the Munchkins in bondage for many years, making them slave for her

  • night and day. Now they are all set free, and are grateful

  • to you for the favor."

  • "Who are the Munchkins?" inquired Dorothy. "They are the people who live in this land

  • of the East where the Wicked Witch ruled." "Are you a Munchkin?" asked Dorothy.

  • "No, but I am their friend, although I live in the land of the North.

  • When they saw the Witch of the East was dead the Munchkins sent a swift messenger

  • to me, and I came at once.

  • I am the Witch of the North." "Oh, gracious!" cried Dorothy.

  • "Are you a real witch?" "Yes, indeed," answered the little woman.

  • "But I am a good witch, and the people love me.

  • I am not as powerful as the Wicked Witch was who ruled here, or I should have set

  • the people free myself."

  • "But I thought all witches were wicked," said the girl, who was half frightened at

  • facing a real witch. "Oh, no, that is a great mistake.

  • There were only four witches in all the Land of Oz, and two of them, those who live

  • in the North and the South, are good witches.

  • I know this is true, for I am one of them myself, and cannot be mistaken.

  • Those who dwelt in the East and the West were, indeed, wicked witches; but now that

  • you have killed one of them, there is but one Wicked Witch in all the Land of Oz--the

  • one who lives in the West."

  • "But," said Dorothy, after a moment's thought, "Aunt Em has told me that the

  • witches were all dead--years and years ago."

  • "Who is Aunt Em?" inquired the little old woman.

  • "She is my aunt who lives in Kansas, where I came from."

  • The Witch of the North seemed to think for a time, with her head bowed and her eyes

  • upon the ground.

  • Then she looked up and said, "I do not know where Kansas is, for I have never heard

  • that country mentioned before. But tell me, is it a civilized country?"

  • "Oh, yes," replied Dorothy.

  • "Then that accounts for it. In the civilized countries I believe there

  • are no witches left, nor wizards, nor sorceresses, nor magicians.

  • But, you see, the Land of Oz has never been civilized, for we are cut off from all the

  • rest of the world. Therefore we still have witches and wizards

  • amongst us."

  • "Who are the wizards?" asked Dorothy. "Oz himself is the Great Wizard," answered

  • the Witch, sinking her voice to a whisper. "He is more powerful than all the rest of

  • us together.

  • He lives in the City of Emeralds."

  • Dorothy was going to ask another question, but just then the Munchkins, who had been

  • standing silently by, gave a loud shout and pointed to the corner of the house where

  • the Wicked Witch had been lying.

  • "What is it?" asked the little old woman, and looked, and began to laugh.

  • The feet of the dead Witch had disappeared entirely, and nothing was left but the

  • silver shoes.

  • "She was so old," explained the Witch of the North, "that she dried up quickly in

  • the sun. That is the end of her.

  • But the silver shoes are yours, and you shall have them to wear."

  • She reached down and picked up the shoes, and after shaking the dust out of them

  • handed them to Dorothy.

  • "The Witch of the East was proud of those silver shoes," said one of the Munchkins,

  • "and there is some charm connected with them; but what it is we never knew."

  • Dorothy carried the shoes into the house and placed them on the table.

  • Then she came out again to the Munchkins and said:

  • "I am anxious to get back to my aunt and uncle, for I am sure they will worry about

  • me. Can you help me find my way?"

  • The Munchkins and the Witch first looked at one another, and then at Dorothy, and then

  • shook their heads.

  • "At the East, not far from here," said one, "there is a great desert, and none could

  • live to cross it."

  • "It is the same at the South," said another, "for I have been there and seen

  • it. The South is the country of the Quadlings."

  • "I am told," said the third man, "that it is the same at the West.

  • And that country, where the Winkies live, is ruled by the Wicked Witch of the West,

  • who would make you her slave if you passed her way."

  • "The North is my home," said the old lady, "and at its edge is the same great desert

  • that surrounds this Land of Oz. I'm afraid, my dear, you will have to live

  • with us."

  • Dorothy began to sob at this, for she felt lonely among all these strange people.

  • Her tears seemed to grieve the kind-hearted Munchkins, for they immediately took out

  • their handkerchiefs and began to weep also.

  • As for the little old woman, she took off her cap and balanced the point on the end

  • of her nose, while she counted "One, two, three" in a solemn voice.

  • At once the cap changed to a slate, on which was written in big, white chalk

  • marks: "LET DOROTHY GO TO THE CITY OF EMERALDS"

  • The little old woman took the slate from her nose, and having read the words on it,

  • asked, "Is your name Dorothy, my dear?" "Yes," answered the child, looking up and

  • drying her tears.

  • "Then you must go to the City of Emeralds. Perhaps Oz will help you."

  • "Where is this city?" asked Dorothy.

  • "It is exactly in the center of the country, and is ruled by Oz, the Great

  • Wizard I told you of." "Is he a good man?" inquired the girl

  • anxiously.

  • "He is a good Wizard. Whether he is a man or not I cannot tell,

  • for I have never seen him." "How can I get there?" asked Dorothy.

  • "You must walk.

  • It is a long journey, through a country that is sometimes pleasant and sometimes

  • dark and terrible. However, I will use all the magic arts I

  • know of to keep you from harm."

  • "Won't you go with me?" pleaded the girl, who had begun to look upon the little old

  • woman as her only friend.

  • "No, I cannot do that," she replied, "but I will give you my kiss, and no one will dare

  • injure a person who has been kissed by the Witch of the North."

  • She came close to Dorothy and kissed her gently on the forehead.

  • Where her lips touched the girl they left a round, shining mark, as Dorothy found out

  • soon after.

  • "The road to the City of Emeralds is paved with yellow brick," said the Witch, "so you

  • cannot miss it.

  • When you get to Oz do not be afraid of him, but tell your story and ask him to help

  • you. Good-bye, my dear."

  • The three Munchkins bowed low to her and wished her a pleasant journey, after which

  • they walked away through the trees.

  • The Witch gave Dorothy a friendly little nod, whirled around on her left heel three

  • times, and straightway disappeared, much to the surprise of little Toto, who barked

  • after her loudly enough when she had gone,

  • because he had been afraid even to growl while she stood by.

  • But Dorothy, knowing her to be a witch, had expected her to disappear in just that way,

  • and was not surprised in the least.

CHAPTER 2. The Council with the Munchkins

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B1 中級 美國腔

第02章 - L.弗蘭克-鮑姆的《綠野仙蹤》--與芒奇金人的議會。 (Chapter 02 - The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum - The Council with the Munchkins)

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    Anbe2623 發佈於 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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